Heel and heel covering and method of making the same



3m i4 1/932 L. J. BAZZONI HEEL AND HEEL COVERING AND METHOD OF MAKINGTHE SAME Fil'ed Dec. ll, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 WW. iummmm...

June 14, 1932. L. J. BAZZONI 1,862,878

HEEL AND HEEL COVERING AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed Dec 11, 19292 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 14, 19.32

UNE EEE SETATES PATENT orrica LEWIS J. BAZZONI, OF SWAMPSCOTT,MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 UNITED SHOE IVIA- OHINERY CORPORATION, JERSEYOF PATEBSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW HEEL AND HEEL COVERING ANDMETHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Application filed December 11, 1929. SerialNo. 413,370.

This invention relates to heels and heel.

coverings and to improved methods of making covered heels and heelcoverings.

For some time covered wood heels have been employed almost exclusivelyin the better grades of womens shoes because of the many superiorqualities and advantages of wood heels, such, for example, as lightness,uniformity of shape and finish, and the fact that such heels can be madein a wide variety of shapes and styles impracticable to produce in heelsbuilt up of leather lifts. Moreover, in covered heels it is practicableto employ covers made of such material and finished in such a manner asto produce various artistic and stylish effects, the color or othercharacteristic of the finished covers harmonizing with the color orfinish of the shoe upper materials or contrasting therewith, as may bedesirable. Leather lift heels, how ever, are better adapted than theusual covered heels to harmonize with the finish of the sole of the shoeand more particularly to match the finish of the sole edge.

In view of the foregoing, one object of the present invention is toprovide a covered heel embodying the well-known desirable features,

of heels of that type and having, in addition, a surface appearance ofleather lift edges with a finish correspondlng to that of the edge of ashoe sole without, however, hav

ing certain disadvantageous characteristics of the less desirableleather lift heels.

To the accomplishment of this object, the present invention provides acover for the rear and sides of a heel comprising a plurality of thinleather strips secured together in abutting edge-to-edge relation. Theillustrated cover is composed of strips of sole leather and, inaccordance with another feature of the invention, the grain or fiber ofthe leather extends endwise to the wearing surface of the cover, as thefiber in a leather sole or heel lift extends endwise of the edge face ofthe sole or lift. Thus the illustrated cover not only is composed. ofthe same material and has the same color and shade as that of the soleof a shoe, but it also has aimpart to a covered heel the surfaceappearance of leather lift edges, the strips constituting the coverherein shown correspond in width to the thickness of leather heel liftsand moreover,.as shown, strips which gradually diminish in width towardtheir ends are so arranged in combination with strips of uniform widththat the cover imparts to a heel to which it is applied the appearanceof a solid leather heel in the manufacture of which wedge lifts havebeen employed.

Invention is also to be recognized as residing in a heel having acovering comprising a plurality of thin narrow strips extending aroundthe rear and sides of the heel and arranged in abutting edge-to-edgerelation. The heel cover is herein shown as being reinforced by a fabricbacking which is adhesively secured to the cover and to the heel.

Considered in one of its method aspects, the invention consists in animprovement in the manufacture of covered heels which comprises making aplurality of thin narrow strips of material suitable .for covering aheel, and applying said strips to a heel in abutting edge-to-edgerelation and with the strips extending around the rear and sides of theheel. As herein exemplified, the strips are produced by cutting througha laminated block composed of a plurality of elongated layers of soleleather stock in which the grain or fibre extends widthwise of thelayers, the layers being adhesively secured together in face-to-fa-cerelation and the cutting being crosswise of the layers in a planetransverse to the run of the fibre therein. As a result of such actionthe strips, before being applied to a heel, are adhesively securedtogether in abutting edgeto-edge relation to form a composite heel coverwhich is applicable as a unit to a heel. Broadly considered, however,invention is also to be recognized in a method of making heels whichcomprises cutting leather stock crosswise of the grain to produce aplurality of strips having the grain extending endwise to the surfacesof the strips, and wrapping the strips around the rear and sides of aheel in abutting edge-to-edge relation.

In making the block from which the heel covers are to be cut, the blocr, as herein shown, is so formed that its cross-sectional contour, inany plane perpendicular to the run of the fibre in its component layers,corresponds to the marginal contour of a heel cover and thus the coverswhen skived from the block are ready for application to heels withoutany preliminary trimming or shaping operation. The fabric backing whichis employed to reinforce the illustrated cover is preferably cut on thebias so that the threads of the backing extend diagonally with respectto the margins of the cover, this expedient rendering the backing morereadily stretchable and thus enabling the cover to conform smoothly tothe contour of the heel. As illustrated, a backing for a cover isconveniently applied to the face of the laminated block before eachslriving operation so that each cover has its backing secured thereto assoon as the cover has been split from the block. In applying the coverto a heel, the cover is wrapped around the rear and sides of the heel inthe usual way and the end portions of the cover are overlapped on theheel breast. As exemplified herein, the end portions of the cover may betrimmed to meet at the middle of the heel breast and laid with theirtrimmed edges abutting, the cover thus completely covering the breast aswell as the rear and sides of the heel.

The invention will be explained with respect to the accompanyingdrawings, in

1 which Fig. 1 is a per pective view of one of the leather strips ofuniform thickness which is employed in the making of the laminated blockfrom which the covers are cut, the strip having been bent into thegeneral form it is to assume in the block;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one of the wedge strips which are used,in conjunction with the strips of uniform thickness, in the making ofthe block;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the block-forming mold showing a plurality ofstrips assembled therein;

Fig. at is aperspective view of a heel cover block after it has beenmolded, a portion of the figure showing the block as it appears afterthe fabric backing has been applied thereto;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of. a heel cover block of modifiedconstruction hereinafter referred to;

Fig. 6 is a conventional view, partially in section and partially inelevation, illustrating a mode of cutting or slriving a cover from ablock;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a completed cover;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a wooden Cuban heel in process of beingcovered;

Figs. 9 and 10 are, respectively, sectional jand perspective views of acovered Cuban heel in which a single cover covers the breast as well asthe rear and sides of the heel;

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of a laminated block from which stripedcoverings may be cut for application to the breast fa es only of a heel;

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a Cuban heel having a striped coveringon its rear and side faces and a separate striped covering, such as thatshown in Fig. 11, upon its breast face; and

Fig. 18 is a perspective view of a portion of a shoe having a Louis heelto the rear and sides of which a striped covering has been applied.

Referring first to Figs. 8 to 10 of the drawings, 12 indicates a woodheel or heel body and 14 indicates a cover for the heel. The heel body12 is of the type commonly employed in the manufacture of covered Cubanheels, but the illustrated cover 14. is of the novel constructionhereinafter described. The cover 1%, as best shown in Figs. 7 and 8,consists of a thin slriving 16 of leather, and a fabric backing 18 whichis adhesively secured to one side of the leather skiving. The skiving 16is composed of thin sections or strips of leather comprising a pluralityof strips 20, each of uniform width and thickness throughout its len th,and a plurality of strips 22, each gradually diminishing in thicknesslengthwise of the strip to provide a wedge formation at its oppositeends. The strips 20 and 22 constituting the leather portion 16 of thecover are arranged in abutting edge-to-edge relation and each strip iscurved edgewise so that the lateral edges of the cover will be curved asrequired to adapt the cover to fit properly when wrapped around a heel.Inasmuch as most heels are higher at their rear portions than at theirbreasts, the middle portion of a cover, which is the portion to beapplied to the rear of such a heel, should be wider than the endportions of the cover which are to be ap plied to the breast of the heelor to surfaces near the breast. As herein illustrated, the desiredexcess width at the middle of the cover is obtained by employment of thewedge strips 22 which are interposed at intervals between the strips 20,a greater or less number of wedge strips being used according to thedifference in height between the rear and breast faces of the heel to becovered. As shown in Fig. 10, the cover 14 is made long enough to coverthe breast as well as the rear and sides of a heel and the cover iswrapped around the rear and sides of the heel while the ends of thecover are arranged in abutting edge-to-edge relation to form a flushjoint 26 extending heightwise of the heel breast. The joint 26 is notvery noticeable and, therefore, does not lessen to any substantialextent the resemblance of the covered heel breast to that of the breastof an uncovered leather-lift heel. If desired, however, and ashereinafter explained,the line.

' lateral margins of the illustrative covers overlap the attaching andtop-lift-receiving faces of the heel as shown at 28 and 30,respectively, in Figs. 9 and 10. If desired, a cover may be employed ofsuch shape that its end portions, instead of coveringthe heel breast,merely overlap. the lateral margins of the breast as shown at 32 in Fig.12. In such a case a separate covering 34 may be employed for the breastof the heel. Thisbreast covering, as shown in Fig. 12, is composed ofstrips 36 corresponding in width to the width of the component strips 16of the side cover 14, the cover 34 being laid so that its strips arealined widthwise with the strips of the cover 14 and thus appear, in thefinished heel, as continuations of the strips of the side cover. In Fig.13 there is shown a Louis heel 38 having a composite cover 40constructed in accordance with the present invention, the cover 40comprising more wedge strips than shown in the Cuban heel covers toadapt the cover to lit the more sharply curved contour of a heel of theLouis type. The ends of the cover 40 merely overlap the lateral marginsof the breast of the heel 38 and a flap 42, split from the sole of theshoe 44 to which the heel is attached, covers the breast of the heel asis the usual custom. In both the Cuban heels herein shown and in theLouis heel 38 the strips constituting the heel covering correspond inshape and arrangement to that of the lifts of a built-up heel and theabutting edges of the cover strips simulate the lines marking the jointsbetween the lifts of such a heel.

by cutting or skiving crosswise of the grain or fibre through pieces orlayers of leather stock of a thickness corresponding to the thickness ofthe lifts of a leather heel. To obtain this result, and in accordancewith the method of making covers herein exemplifed, a plurality of suchpieces of leather, preferably sole leather, are assembled face-tofaceand secured together by snitahie adhesive, such as pyroxylin cement, toform a laminated block having top and bottom s1 faces made up of thelateral edges of the ieces or layers constituting the block. T 1e eelcovers are then formed from such a block by cutting or skiving acrossthe block in i planes parallel to its top and bottom surfaces.

A laminated block built up in the manner above described is shown at inFig. 4. The block 50 is composed of a plurality of elongated strips 52(see also Fig. 1), each of uniiform width and thickness throughoutitslength, and a plurality of shorter strips 54 (see also Fig. 2) of thesame width as the strips 50, the strips 54 being provided with taperingor wedge-shaped ends 56 and having a maximum thickness equal to that ofthe strips 52. In building up the block 50, the strips 52 and 54 arearranged as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 to form a laminated structure of athickness equal to the width of the strips and having top and bottomsurfaces formed by the edge faces of the strips, after which the blockis molded so that its cross-sectional contour, in any plane parallel toits top and bottom faces, corresponds to that of a heel cover. Thus, bycutting or skiving across the block in planes parallel to its top and'bottom faces thin leather skivings may be produced which have marginaloutlines adapating them for use as heel covers and which are composed ofa plurality of strips secured together in abutting edge-to-edge relationand corresponding in width and edge contour to that of the layers-52 and56 of the block 50.

The difference in height between the rear and breast faces of heels isdue to the forward pitch of the attaching face of the heel and is asubstantial difference in most covered heels such as high heels of theCuban, military or Louis types which are used almost exclusively uponwomens shoes. This pitch of the attaching face, together with thedownward and forward slope of the rear surfaces of such heels makes itnecessary for the covers to have a substantial amount of curvature intheir upper and lower edges in order to fit properly when applied to therear and sides of the heels. To provide for this curvature of the coveredges, the block 50 is shaped as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

In making the block 50, the strips or layers 52 and 54 are assembled ina mold comprising relatively movable mold members 60 and 62 (Fig. 3)having molding faces curved to correspond to the desired curvature ofthe upper and lower edges of the covers to be cut from the block. Inusing the mold, the strips are first rough-molded to approximately thecurvatures of the operating faces of the mold members. The number andshape of the wedge strips employed and their arrangement relatively tothe other strips depends, of course, upon the shape of the heel to becovered. The preliminary rouglrmolding of the strips 52 and 54 takesplace while the strips are in temper, and it may consist merely inbending the strips by hand into substantially the shape shown in Figs. 1and 2, either before the strips are laid in the mold or while they arebeing introduced therein. Each strip 52 and 54 is coated upon its sidefaces with adhesive before it is placed in the mold. The strips arearranged as shown with the wedge strips 54 arranged at intervals betweenthe strips 52.

After a sufiicient number of strips 52 and 54 have been assembledbetween the mold members 60 and G2 to make block, pressure is applied inany suitable manner to the mold members to consolidate the material ofthe strips and to impart the desired final shape to the block. Thismolding pressure is maintained long enough to insure the setting of theadhesive between the strips which make up the block. After having eenmolded the block 50 is shaped as shown in Fig. 4.

The heel covers which are to be cut from the block 50 are preferably tobe reinforced by a suitable backing, such as the fabric backing 18already referred to. As shown in Figs. t and 7, the fabric constitutingthe backing is died out to correspond in outline to that of the heelcover, the backing being preferably made slightly larger than the coverso that no great amount of care is necessary in locating the backingupon the cover. As indicated in Fig. 4, the sheet of backing material iscut on the bias, i. e., the threads which make up the fabric aredisposed obliquely with respect to the edges of the sheet, thisarrangement permitting the fabric to stretch readily as the cover isbeing applied to a heel and thus insuring that the cover will conformsmoothly to the curved surfaces of the heel. Preferably the backing isstained to match the finish of the cover so that the backing would notbe readily noticeable if a small portion of it should become exposedbecause of a hole or defect in the cover. It is to be understood that,while the cover herein shown has a backing secured to it, the use of thebacking is by no means essential inasmuch as good results have beenobtained by applying directly to the heels covers made up 0 strips ashereinbefore described and having no backing or reinforcement of anykind thereon. The backing, however, in addition to reinforcing the coveragainst wear, insures against separation of the strips during shipmentand handling of the covers as well as opening-up of the joints betweenthe strips after the covers have been applied to the heels.

It has been found advantageous to apply the backing for each cover blankto the block 50 before the blank is cut from the block. In Fig. 4 thereis shown a portion of a sheet of fabric backing 38 adhesively secured toone face of the block. It has been found advantageous to secure thebacking to the block by means of an adhesive of such a character that itwill not act as a solvent for the adhesive employed to secure togetherthe layers of the block. Rubber cement has been found to be suitable forthis purpose.

The block 50 is now ready to have cover blanks skived therefrom and, asherein illustrated, this is effected by repeatedly feeding the block,with the backing material 18 thereon, edgewise past a skiving knife 64,the block being conveniently advanced to the knife by means of feedrolls 66 and 68 arranged to engage opposite sides of the block. As aresult of each movement of the block 50 past the knife 64, a thinskiving 70 is produced which has a fabric backing thereon. When theskiving 70 has been entirely severed from the block 50, it has theoutline of a heel cover and is ready to be applied to a heel. Theleather portion of each heel cover is composed, as already described, ofa plurality of thin narrow strips 20 and 22 which extend lengthwise ofthe cover and in which the fibre or grain of the leather extends endwiseto the surfaces of the strips. Moreover, the narrow strips 20 and 22 aredisposed in abutting edge-to-edge relation and each strip is thecounterpart, in marginal contour and surface texture, of the exposededge face of the corresponding lift of a leather-lift heel of the size,shape and style to which the cover is adapted to be applied.

The heel covers 14 are applied by wrapping each cover around a heel inthe usual manner, a coating of adhesive having been first applied,either to the heel, or to the cover, or to both the heel and the cover.Rubber cement has been successfully used for securing the covers to theheels, it having been found that such adhesive will not have anytendency to interfere with the adhesion of the edges of the stripscomposing the cover and that it will coact with the rubber cementemployed between the cover and its backing to provide a secure bondingtogether of the cover, the backing and the heel.

The cover shown in Fig. 8 is adapted to cover not only the rear andsides of a heel but to cover the breast surface as well, the oppositeends of the cover being trimmed to meet in a straight line extendingheightwise of the heel along the middle of the breast, and the lateralmargins of the cover are laid over the top-lift-receiving and attachingfaces of the heel in the customary way, as hereinbefore explained.Inasmuch as the strips 20 and 22 which constitute the cover 14 are ofthe same width as the component lifts of a built-up or all-leather heel,a heel after having the cover 1% applied thereto as above described hasthe desired surface appearance of leather lift edges. Furthermore, sincethe component strips of the cover are cut crosswise of the grain, thegrain or fibre in the strips extends endwise to the wearing surface ofthe cover, thereby enabling the cover to be finished to correspond tothe finish of a shoe sole or a. leather-lift heel. When a top lift 76has been applied to the covered heel and the heel has been attached to ashoe, so that both the attaching and top-lift-receiving faces of theheel are covered, there is nothing except the line or joint 26 toindicate that the heel is not actually a solid leather heel. The line orjoint 26 may be entirely obliterated by buffing or other finishingoperations. The heel cover may be stained or dyed, preferably afterbeing applied to the heels, to match or harmonize with the finish of thebottoms of the shoes to which the heels are to be attached and, ifdesired, certain of the component strips of the cover may be finished incontrasting shades corresponding to those of the individual lifts of aleather heel. It has been found desirable also to impregnate the heelcovers with a suitable solution for waterproofing them. This re sult hasbeen accomplished by coating the covered heels with a solution ofcelluloid, the celluloid serving to stiffen and strengthen the covers aswell as to render them impervious to moisture. Preferably, the coveredheels are ultimately finished by buffing and waxing operations.

If the cover is to be made as shown in Fig. 12 of such length that itsend portions will merelyoverlap the lateral margins of the breast, aseparate breast covering may be employed, such as the covering 84, whichis composed of a series of strips corresponding in number to the numberof non wedge strips in the side covering, such a covering being laid sothat its strips will be alined widthwise with the corresponding stripsof the side cover so that the strips of the separate breast coveringwill appear to be continuous with those of the side covering. Breastcovers 34 are formed, as illustrated in Fig, 11, by cutting crosswise ofthe laminations of a block 72 in planes parallel to that indicated bythe i line 7474 in that figure. Such breast covers may conveniently betrimmed to fit the lateral edge contours of the heel breast after beingapplied and the trimmed edges reduced by buffing or otherwise so that nosubstantial edgethickness will be visible to detract from the appearanceof the heel as a leatherlift heel. If desired, the separate breastcovering may be cut from asingle integral piece of covering materialsuch as leather or celluloid in the usual way. In the case of a Louisheel, such as that shown in Fig. 13, a separate breast covering has beenprovided in the form of the flap 42 split from the sole of the shoe 44.

l/Vhile the laminated block from which the covers are cut has beenherein described as having substantially the marginal contour of asingle heel cover, it is advantageous from certain points of view tomakethe block of i such shape that each skiving taken therefrom will formtwo heel covers joined endto-end. A block of this modified formation isshown in Fig. 5 wherein a block 80 is shown as being composed of aplurality of strips 82 ofeven thickness and two sets of wedge strips 84.The strips 82 are approximately twice as long as the correspondingstrips of the block and are bent into the form of an ogee curve. Theblock 80 is made into cover blanks by feeding the block endwise past aknife arranged to cut in planes parallel to the top and bottom faces ofthe block. Each cover blank skived from the block 80 is dividedcrosswise into two parts, each forming a single heel cover, by cuttingthe blank along a line bearing the same relation to the blank as theline 8686 bears to the block 80 in Fi 5.

The invention having been described, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A heel having acovering comprising a plurality of strips of leather in which the grainextends endwise to the side faces of the strips, said strips extendingaround the rear and sides of the heel.

2. A covered heel consisting of a heel body, and a covering secured tothe heel body and comprising a plurality of thin strips of leather inwhich the grain extends endwise to the side faces of the strips, saidstrips being secured together in abutting edge-toedge relation andextending around the rear and sides of the heel.

3. A heel having a covering comprising a plurality of thin, narrowstrips extending around the rear and sides of the heel and arranged inabutting edge-to-edge relation.

4. A heel having a covering comprising a plurality of narrow stripsarranged in abutting edge-to-edge relation, said strips extending aroundthe rear and sides of the heel and across the breast face of the heel.

5. A heel having a covering comprising a plurality of strips secured toand extending around the rear and sides of the heel, the stripscorresponding in width to the thickness of the individual lifts of asolid leather heel.

6. A heel'having a covering comprising a plurality of strips arranged inabutting edge-to-edge relation and extending around the rear and sidesof the heel, said strips being of contrasting shades and simulating thecomponent lifts of a leather-lift heel.

7. A heel having a covering comprising a plurality of strips each ofuniform width throughout its length, and a strip tapering Widthwise atits ends, said strips being arranged in abutting edgeto-edge relationand extending around the rear and sides of the heel.

8. A heel having a covering comprising a plurality of strips each ofuniform width and thickness throughout its length and a plurality ofwedge strips each of uniform width but diminishing in thickness towardits opposite ends, said wedge strips being severally interposed atintervals between the strips of uniform width and the strips beingsecured together in abutting edge-to-edge relation and arranged on therear and sides of the heel.

9. A heel having a cover comprising a plurality of strips arranged inabutting edge-toedge relation, and a piece of cover-reinforcing materialinterposed between the cover and the heel.

10. A heel having a cover comprising a plurality of thin strips arrangedin abutting edge-to-edge relation and extending around the rear andsides of the heel, and a backing coextensive with the cover andadhesively secured to the cover and to the heel.

11. A wood heel having a cover comprising a plurality of thin strips ofleather in which the grain extends endwise to the surfaces of thestrips, the strips being arranged in abutting edge-to-edge relation andextending around the rear sides of the heel, and a fabric backing forthe cover.

12. A. wood heel havin a cover comprising a plurality of thin strips ofleather in which the grain extends endwise to the surfaces of thestrips, the strips eing arranged in abutting edge-to-edge relation andextending around the rear and sides of the heel, and a backing for thecover comprising a piece of woven fabric arranged with its threadsextending obliquely with respect to the margins of the cover.

18. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the rear and sides of aheel comprising a plurality of thin leather strips secured together inabutting edge-to-edge relation.

14. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the rear and sides of aheel comprising a plurality of strips joined together in edgeiTO-QCl Qrelation with the strips extending lengthwise of the cover.

15. As an article of manufacture, a reinforced cover for the rear andsides of a heel comprising a plurality of thin leather strips, arrangedin abutting edge-to-ed 'e relation, and a fabric backing for said stripsadhesively secured thereto.

16. As an article of manufacture, a leather cover for the rear and sidesof a heel, the cover having the grain of the leather extending endwiseto the wearing surface of the cover.

17. As an article of maufacture, a heel cover comprising a plurality ofcurved leather strips in which the grain extends endwise to the faces ofthe strips, said strips being secured together in abutting edge-to-edgerelation to form a cover shaped to lit the rear and sides of a heel andhaving its component strips arranged to extend in directions transverseto the lateral edges of the breast of a heel to which the cover isadapted to be applied.

18. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the rear and sides of aheel comprising a plurality of sole leather strips corresponding inwidth to the thickness of the individual lifts of a built-up heel, saidstrips extending lengthwise of the cover in abutting edge-toedgerelation and being of contrasting shades to accentuate the stripedappearance of the covered heel.

19. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the rear and sides of aheel comprising a plurality of strips each of a uniform width throughoutcorresponding to the thickness of the non-wedge lifts of a built-upheel, and a plurality of wedge strips corresponding in contour to theedge face contour of the wedge lifts of a built-up heel, the stripsextending lengthwise of the cover and being secured together in abuttingedge-to-edge relation and the wedge strips being interposed between theuniform width strips to simulate the rear and side surface appearance ofa laminated heel which is higher at the rear than at the breast.

20. That improvement in the manufacture of covered heels which comprisesmaking a plurality of thin narrow strips of material suitable forcovering a heel, and applying such strips to a heel in abuttingedge-to-edge relation with the strips extending around the rear andsides of the heel.

21. That improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisescutting leather stock crosswise of the grain to produce a plurality ofstrips in which the grain ext-ends endwise t0 the surfaces of thestrips, and wrapping the strips around the rear and sides of a heel inabutting edge-toedge relation.

22. That improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisescutting leather stock crosswise of the grain to produce a plurality ofstrips in which the grain extends endwise to the surfaces of the strips,applying the strips to a heel with the strips disposed in edge-to-edgerelation upon the rear and sides of the heel and extending beyond theheel breast, and utilizing said extending portions of the strips forcovering the breast of the heel.

23. hat improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisescutting leather stock crosswise of the grain to produce a plurality ofstrips in which the grain extends endwise to the surfaces of the strips,applying the strips to a heel with the strips disposed in edge-to-edgerelation upon the rear and sides of the heel and extending beyond bothlateral breast edges of the heel, and trimming the extending portions ofthe strips and laying them against the heel breast with their trimmededges abutting.

24c. That improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisescutting leather stock crosswise of the grain to produce a plurality ofstrips in which the grain extends endwise to the surfaces of the strips,applying the strips to a heel with the strips disposed in edge-to-edgerelation upon the rear and sides of the heel and extending beyond bothlateral breast edges of the heel, trimming the extending portions of thestrips and laying them against the heel breast with their trimmed edgesabutting, and finishing said trimmed edge portions of the strips toobliterate the joints formed between said abutting edges.

25. That improvement in methods of making covered heels which consistsin securing together fiatwise a plurality of layers of sheet material toform a laminated block, cutting the block crosswise of its laminationsto produce a thin, flexible heel cover composed of a plurality of narrowstrips secured together in abutting edge-to-edge relation, and applyingthe cover to a heel with the component strips of the cover extendingaround the rear and sides of the heel and overlapping the heel breast.

26. That improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisesarranging in face-to-face relation and adhesively securing together aplurality of layers to make a laminated block having opposite surfacesformed by the edge faces of said layers, cutting the block crosswise ofits laminations and in a plane parallel to said surfaces to form a heelcover comprising a plurality of thin strips secured together inedge-toedge relation, and securing the heel cover to a heel by adhesiveof a character incapable of acting as a solvent for the adhesiveemployed to secure together the layers constituting the block. 7

27 That improvement in methods of making covered heels which comprisesassembling a plurality of layers in face-to-face relation and securingthem together by pyroxylin cement to form a laminated block havingopposite surfaces formed by the edge faces of said layers, cutting theblockcrosswise of its laminations and in a plane parallel to saidsurfaces to form a cover for the rear and sides of a heel comprising aplurality of strips secured together in edge-to-edge relation, andsecuring the heel cover to a heel by means of rubber cement.

28. That improvement in methods of making heel covers which comprisessecuring together and shaping a plurality of strips of stock to form alaminated block having a cross-sectional contour corresponding to themarginal contour of covers for the rear and sides of high heels forwomens shoes, and cutting said block crosswise of its laminations toform a heel cover composed of a plurality of strips secured together inabutting edge-to-edge relation.

29. That improvement in methods of making covers for the rear and sidefaces of heels which comprises forming a laminated block by securingtogether in face-to-face relation a plurality of layers of leather, andcutting the block crosswise of its laminations to produce a heel covercomposed of a plurality of thin narrow strips secured together inabutting edge-to-edge relation and having the grain of the leatherextending endwise to the surfaces of the strips. 7

30. That improvement in methods of making heel covers which comprisesassembling block, and cutting the block crosswise of the A laminationsto produce a heelcover composed of a plurality of thin narrow stripssecured together in abutting e-dge-to-edge relation and backed byreinforcing material.

31. That improvement in methods of making'heel covers which comprisessecuring'together a plurality of strips of stock to form a laminatedblock having opposite sides formed by the edge faces of said strips, cutting a piece of woven fabric on the bias to form a backing for a heelcover, adhesively securing the said backing to one side of said block,and cutting the blockin a plane parallel to said side to form a heelcover reinforced by said backing. I

32. That improvement in methods of making heels which comprisesassembling and securing together in side-by-side relation a plurality oflayers of leather to make a laminated block having side faces formed bythe edge faces of said layers, molding the block to impart thereto acrosssectional contour corresponding to the marginal contour of a heelcover, and cutting through the block in a plane parallel to said sidefaces to produce a heel cover composed of a plurality of thin narrowstrips secured together in abutting edge-to-edge relation with the grainof the leather extending endwise to the surfaces of the strips andadapted for application to the rear and sides of heels having pitchedattaching faces and sloping rear surfaces.

33. That improvement in methods of making heel covers which comprisesbending a plurality of leather strips into substantially the curvaturesof the lateral edges of a cover for the rear and sides of a heel for awomans shoe, assembling and securing said strips together in abuttingface-to-face relation to form a laminated block having opposite sidefaces composed of the edge faces of said strips, and cutting said blockin planes parallel to said side faces to form heel covers composed ofstrips secured together in edge-to-edge relation.

34. That improvement in methods of making heel covers which comprisesassembling and adhesively securing together a plurality of strips eachof uniform Width and thickness throughout its length and one or more 7through the block in a plane parallel to said side faces to form a heelcover.

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35. That improvement in methods of making heel covers which comprisesforming from leather stool: a plurality of layers each of substantiallyuniform thickness throughout its length and a plurality of Wedge layers,bending the layers fiatwise and adhesively securing them together withthe Wedge layers interposed at intervals between the other layers toform a laminated block having top and bottom faces formed by the edgefaces of said layers and shaped to correspond to the outline of a coverfor the rear and sides of a high heel for a womans shoe, applyingpressure to said block in directions fiatwise of the layers to hold thelayers together during the setting of the adhesive, successively skivingthin layers from the top of the block for use as heel covers, andsecuring reinforcing material to the faces formed on the block by eachsplitting operation to provide backings for the covers as the covers aresuccessively split from the block.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

LEV-71S J BAZZONI.

